Following last week’s announcement that Leeds Rhinos and former Great Britain and England legend Jamie Peacock MBE will be a guest speaker at the 2014 Capital Challenge London Skolars are delighted to announce that Peacock will be joined by a second guest speaker at the event, none other than former Wigan Warriors and Great Britain legend Martin Offiah MBE.

Offiah, who was born in London, started his Rugby League career with Widnes in 1987 where he went on to notch up 181 tries in 141 games. When he made the move to Wigan in 1992 it was for a then world record fee of £440,000.
Offiah went on to write his name in the record books again scoring 186 tries in 159 games for Wigan before he returned to his native London in 1996 to play for the London Broncos, whom he appeared for in their 1999 Challenge Cup defeat against Leeds.

After a spell at Salford Offiah finished his Rugby career with a year at London Wasps (2001-2002).
Offiah scored 26 tries in 33 appearances for Great Britain and 8 tries in 5 appearances for England.

In recent years Offiah has become known for his work in the media, including appearances on Sky Sports and regular newspaper columns.

On announcing Martin Offiah as a second guest speaker at Capital Challenge London Skolars General Manager had this to say: “We are truly thrilled that Martin will be joining Jamie Peacock on the platform at Capital Challenge. How fitting that a Wigan legend, born here in London, should be in attendance to support this event. Having Wigan come down to play us and having a Wigan legend like Martin in attendance is fantastic news and makes the 2014 Capital Challenge a must for Rugby League fans.”

Confirming his appearance at the 2014 Capital Challenge Offiah commented “I am delighted to have been asked to speak at this great event. Whilst it’s a shame Broncos can’t appear at the Capital Challenge this time I believe bringing Wigan to play in the heart of the City can only be positive for the sport in the South and it’s a great opportunity for London Rugby League fans to see the double winners at close quarters.”

The 2014 Challenge between London Skolars and Wigan Warriors takes place at the prestigious Honourable Artillery Company’s grounds in the City of London on Friday 24th January.
Prior to the game Skolars will host a special luncheon for 200+ guests in the Prince Consort Room at the venue and guests will get the opportunity to hear from two true legends of the modern game.

Tickets for the Capital Challenge 2014 are available from London Skolars and can be purchased by visiting the club’s website www.skolarsrl.com or calling 020 8888 8488.

Tickets for the pre-match luncheon, featuring guest speakers Martin Offiah and Jamie Peacock can be purchased from the club in advance only. For more information e-mail info@skolarsrl.com or call the club,

Great line up - I'm sure that tickets will be in demand this year. "Wigan" is still a significant brand name in sport that can carry a lot of weight outside of the tradition London RL public.

I'll certainly be at the event, as usual. Looking forward to it!

disques vogue

The club where Eurovision isn't a dirty word. A waltz through the leopard skin lined world of Tom Jones, Bert Kampfert and Burt Bacharach. Step out to the sound of the happy hammond and swing to the seductive sounds of the samba.